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New York Times
21-05-2025
- New York Times
Axed and Answered: Deep Cuts From a History of Gruesome Crimes
You might think that writing about axe murder is morbid. 'But, really, it's the history of civilization!' says Rachel McCarthy James, whose new book, 'Whack Job' (St. Martin's), chronicles the bloody and fascinating history of this versatile tool and the people who wield it. In a video interview, James spoke about her favorite axe murderers, the banality of chain saws and Paul Bunyan. Her answers have been edited and condensed. Who was your first? What got you interested in axe murder? Well, it really started when I moved back to Kansas after college. My dad [the noted true-crime and baseball writer Bill James] was working on the book that would become 'The Man from the Train,' and hired me as a research assistant. Pretty quickly, it became clear that I was going to be a coauthor. So, definitely, the first axe murderer for me would be the subject of that book. The axe was not quite a central part of the case; it was one of many elements, although the fact that all the serial murders were committed with the back of an axe was certainly something the newspapers [in 1911 and 1912] focused on. So how, exactly, are you defining 'axe murderer?' It's such an interesting phrase, isn't it? We don't say 'knife killer' or 'gun shooter.' Culturally, it's very broadly defined — axes are used around the world, and I explore their use as weapons of war, and as tools of execution and human sacrifice. It's really entwined with different versions of how we experience, and how we commit, violence. In the case of William Tillman, which I write about, who was a free man trying to escape enslavement, that was self-defense. He wasn't acting out of revenge or rage; he was trying to save his own life, save his own freedom. And a lot of these killers weren't especially fixated on axes; it's just what was around. Do you distinguish between hatchets and axes? Not explicitly, because in both cases, what makes it interesting is that it's a tool as much as it is a weapon. The axe has been crucial to the development of human civilization in so many ways, in terms of altering landscape, allowing us to build houses. And with progress, almost inevitably, comes grisly brutality. Working together means coming into conflict with each other. What's one of the most intriguing axe murders you came across in your research? I was fascinated by the 1980 case of Candy Montgomery, who murdered Betty Gore with a huge, three-foot axe. At the time I wrote the proposal, that story seemed kind of forgotten. Then maybe two months after I signed my book deal, there were two different warring TV series! Which do you think is more accurate? I like the Hulu one quite a bit better. You end up taking a surprising line on Lizzie Borden. I put that in the book proposal almost out of obligation. I wasn't that excited about it until I actually got into the story and understood how deep the puzzle goes and why it's so transfixing to just so many people — beyond the catchy rhyme. And now I'm quite convinced that the case is far more complicated than we've been led to believe. While you get into global history, it struck me reading your book that the axe has a very particular relationship to the American mythos. It does embody American colonial self-visions in a lot of ways. An axe was something that any pioneer knew how to wield — there were so many different uses for it, building homes, shingles, as a cleaver, even shoeing horses — and I think it was part of how they saw themselves earning the land, even though, of course, it wasn't really earned. But many of the people who came over, like George Washington's grandfather, were not used to tilling the land themselves. They were using enslaved people to do a lot of that work for them. Putting axes in their hands as well, which could be a key to rebellion. Recently I came across a vintage hatchet cookie-cutter, and realized it could have been intended for Washington or Lincoln's birthday. Yes, it's just an odd fact that both these February presidents have the hatchet association. It's clearly about self-reliance. We associate it with Paul Bunyan, too. Paul usually has a double-sided axe, which is interesting because that's kind of traditionally considered a feminine tool. Logging is a big part of the axe story. Of course, logging now is all about sawmills and chain saws, which have also become symbols of gruesome violence, but the chain saw is, really, a tool. It doesn't have a history as a weapon, the way that the axe does. It really is just for cutting wood and, you know, occasionally you see it in real-life murders for dismembering. 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' stands out. I mean, how many people really know how to use a chain saw? You make the point that because everyone once had axes lying around — and did know how to use them — it was often the weapon of choice in a crime of opportunity. But nowadays, it's a more exotic tool. Does an axe murder today imply a greater level of intention and derangement? Here in Lawrence, with homelessness growing as it is in so many places, there have been a number of incidents of people in encampments threatening each other with axes. Again, they have it as a tool, and when things escalate, it's there. How are you at wielding an axe? Not very good at all. I'm OK at throwing axes, but not great at swinging them. My boss's husband collects axes, and we went to their property so I could get a little practical knowledge. I was sore for a week after about 45 minutes of swinging the axe. It made me realize how hard it would be to actually murder someone. Just to get it high enough to have the leverage — not to be morbid — is a feat. I mean, you need to be in shape. Or you'd have to be driven by an almost superhuman rage.
The Guardian
14-05-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Going back to Guernsey: the quiet start that helped Maya Le Tissier make a noise
Black and white jerseys hang from a washing line tied on to a shipping container and, inside the adjacent clubhouse, a group of lads are sipping cold beers on a bank holiday Monday afternoon. This is St Martins AC, a quintessential community club hidden down the narrowest of side roads on the island of Guernsey. Hanging proudly in a frame above the club's bar is a No 4 shirt bearing the name: 'Le Tiss'. As the Manchester United captain enters her old clubhouse to greet her former teammates, they immediately exchange banter. Maya Le Tissier is back home among those who saw her grow up from a toddler kicking a ball around to a 23-year-old who will, on Sunday, lead her team out at Wembley. 'I owe everything to the island and my support network,' Le Tissier says, looking out across the St Martins pitch where she used to play in a hugely talented midfield alongside the Bournemouth men's player Alex Scott. 'It's not quite Old Trafford, but coming here is just as special.' The match that changed her life was not actually played on the island, but instead came at Southampton's training centre in Marchwood. It was a game she was not originally meant to play. A 10-year-old Le Tissier had accompanied her dad to watch his boys' academy side face Southampton. 'She came on the trip with her boots in her bag, carrying the drinks for the lads. We had about four injuries so we were down a player and Maya said 'can I go on and play?' and we said 'yes, of course,'' recalls Rob Jones, a family friend and former coach of Le Tissier. 'At the end of the game, the Southampton coaches said: 'Who is that girl? She's amazing.' From that moment she sort of had an epiphany, realising how good she was.' Jones is speaking in the cafe at Guernsey's immaculate, newly built stadium, Victoria Park, where he is the stadium director, and where Le Tissier is helping out with a youth session before making the youngsters' days with signed balls and selfies. She is greeted like a big celebrity. Some of the youngsters had been on the same flight as her the night before, having gone specifically to watch her play at Old Trafford in the Manchester derby. When she was their age, though, she was in a boys' team. 'In Guernsey football, there was no pathway for girls at the time, 12, 13 years ago,' Jones says. 'There was girls' kick-a-round stuff on Sunday mornings but she was far too good for that. Playing with the boys is where she got her steel, determination and willpower. She read the game really well and, physically, she was stronger than the lads at 11, 12. She was not afraid to get stuck in.' With a population of around 64,000, in Guernsey, footballers who 'make it' are rare. Tell a taxi driver you are here to interview a footballer and they ask: 'Maya or Matt?' The Lionesses defender is not a direct relation to the former Southampton forward. The surname Le Tissier, deriving from the old French word for a weaver, is common here. To call the island peaceful would be an understatement. Cars are often left unlocked. On the day of our visit, the worst offence reported in the local newspaper was a man urinating in public. With its charming coves, it is easy to see why Le Tissier loves to return, still training at St Martins AC to keep fit when she is home for Christmas. She was coached by her dad, Darren, from the age of four, enjoying huge success alongside Scott – who was a year younger but so skilful he was playing up an age group – but she would eventually leave the island to pursue her career, a decision she says was 'easy', adding: 'That's all I wanted to do. I think my family found it hard, with me leaving at quite a young age, but hopefully they can see that it all played out well. I wanted to create a pathway, because no one had ever done it before me in the women's game from Guernsey, to show people they can break through.' She chose Brighton, where she would combine training with studying at the nearby Worthing College, cycling the journey between the two, and staying with a host family. Later the same year, still aged 16, she made her senior debut. Her proud dad, who can still recall the Rudimental and Jess Glynne songs that were playing in the car as he and Maya drove to Brighton to look around the facilities, recalls: 'Hope [Powell] and Amy [Merricks] were just so good for Maya. Maya would swallow every bit of information she was given. Hope used to say: 'You've got to push yourself, there's no point swimming in a comfy lane.' We were so grateful for Brighton.' Sign up to Moving the Goalposts No topic is too small or too big for us to cover as we deliver a twice-weekly roundup of the wonderful world of women's football after newsletter promotion Remarkably, since cementing her place in Brighton's team in the 2020-21 campaign, she has started every WSL match for five consecutive seasons, the first two of those at Brighton and the past three at Manchester United. Further still, she has played every single minute of the past two league campaigns. The secret is her dedication to keeping fit and Darren says: 'Maya's different. She sacrifices absolutely everything to ensure she's 100%. She realises that your career is short. She's very happy-go-lucky off the pitch but, when it comes to football on the pitch, she's just steely and determined to win and nothing gets in the way of that.' This season, despite not turning 23 until April, she has been Manchester United's captain. Fellow United defender Gabby George, speaking the following day, says Le Tissier is 'everything we would want from a captain' and describes her dedication to gym work as inspirational to the squad. Accepting the captaincy is something Le Tissier admits took careful thought, given her age: 'I was honoured. It's not something that I thought would ever come, with Zel [Katie Zelem] leaving. I had a real, big think about whether I wanted to do it. It's not something I would ever take lightly. It's a big thing. I had a coffee with Marc [Skinner, the United manager] to speak about it and I spoke to my family and thought, 'yes'. I've definitely had to develop my leadership qualities, mostly off the pitch, as a leader, [but] I've really enjoyed it.' We move to Icart Point, a clifftop with stunning sea views along one of her favourite dog-walking spots, 24 hours after she and George had helped United clinch a Women's Champions League by coming from 2-0 down to draw with Manchester City, a beaming Le Tissier says: 'To come back from two down at Old Trafford, with so much on the line, it just shows how strong we are now – we might not have the most experienced team but our mentality is so strong.' Next, attention turns to Wembley, where they will contest the cup final for a third consecutive year, this time as the holders, after last year's 4-0 win over Tottenham. 'That was honestly like the best day of my life,' Le Tissier recalls. 'We knew there were probably quite a few players who were going to leave so to be able to do it with that team … [she pauses to smile] and also the year before we'd lost to Chelsea, so we knew how badly that hurt. 4-0, it was sunny, all my family were there, it was just a sick day!' For Sunday's showdown with Chelsea, about 30 of her family and friends will be there and– by the sounds of it – the flights from Guernsey will be jam-packed with residents heading to watch the island's favourite daughter. Whether she lifts the cup or not, she has already won this island's heart.
Powys County Times
09-05-2025
- Sport
- Powys County Times
Llanfyllin Town bolster squad with three new signings
LLANFYLLIN Town Football Club has begun its strengthening ahead of next season with three new signings. The MMP Central Wales League North club has struggled this season but manager Liam Braisdell has wasted no time in bolstering his squad ahead of next season. Matt Morris heads the cast of new arrivals following his signing from JD Cymru North side Newtown. Braisdell said: 'As soon as myself and Jensen knew there was a chance of bringing Matt back to the club, we jumped at it. "Matt has qualities beyond his years and has had many clubs chasing him at this level. He is very confident and technically brilliant for such a young age. "It's a huge first step in our recruitment and there will be others soon.' Former Morda United, Shrewsbury Town and St Martins goalkeeper Oakley Taylor also lands Cae Llwyn. Braisdell said: 'Having had a good chat with him about our plans, he was keen to join. "He's a fantastic shot stopper, a brilliant personality with a voice for his defenders. I feel we have a very good young goalkeeper on our hands with real quality in his distribution also." Ex-Brickfield Rangers player Harvey Jones arrives from Salop Leisure League One club St Martins. Braisdell said: 'Harvey is an outstanding competitor who's aggressive and hates losing duels. 'He's a good passer of the ball with a strong aerial presence which we feel we're lacking a little bit at the moment. 'Harvey will no doubt be a huge asset to us moving forward. We still need to go further to ensure this club is competitive next season but it's been a good week.'
